September 2016

Great news! Physician loan rates lower nationwide and near all time lows.

Bankrate.com, which puts out a weekly mortgage-rate-trend index, found that more than half of the experts it surveyed say they think rates will fall in the coming week. Greg McBride, senior vice president and chief financial analyst at Bankrate.com, is one who is predicting rates will go down. “The Fed didn’t raise rates, and despite sending a strong signal that a rate hike is coming, they don’t expect core inflation to hit 2 percent until 2018,” McBride said. “All this is good news for long-term bonds, and by extension, mortgage rates.”

Mortgage rates moved slightly lower this week, according to the latest data released Thursday by Freddie Mac. While this is good for now better rates may be on the near horizon moving forward. However, The Feds now expects rates to be about 1.1 percent by the end of 2017, down from June’s forecast of 1.6 percent. Those moves could lead to lower long-term bond yields, which would favor lower mortgage rates.

In its monthly outlook released earlier this week, Freddie Mac predicted that this year will be the best year in home sales since 2006. It expects mortgage rates to remain low with the 30-year fixed rate, the most popular mortgage product, on pace to average 3.6 percent this year. That would be the lowest annual average in 40 years, surpassing the previous low of 3.66 percent set in 2012.

“The housing market remains a bright spot for the U.S. economy, with solid job gains and low mortgage interest rates sustaining the economy’s momentum in September,” Becketti said in a statement. “In most markets, low mortgage rates have more than offset the rise in house prices, preserving homebuyer affordability for the typical household. Homeowners are also taking advantage of low rates and house price appreciation that is increasing their home equity. The share of cash-out refinances grew to 41 percent in the second quarter of 2016, compared to 38 percent in the first quarter and 15 to 20 percent during the housing crisis.”

All of this adds up to huge savings on a 30 year mortgage rate. Enjoy!